By: Andres Leon / Staff Writer
The FIU men’s soccer team scored first in their match against the No. 15 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, momentarily shifting the momentum in favor of the Golden Panthers.
But that was the only goal for the Golden Panthers on Sept. 2 as they dropped a 3-1 decision to the Buckeyes in their first road match of the season.
Jahbari Willis weaved his way through the back line of the Buckeyes defense and delivered a strike that barely got by Buckeye goalkeeper Matt Lampson in the 24th minute to give the Golden Panthers the early lead.
The Golden Panthers did not put much more pressure on Lampson, however, forcing him to record just three saves on the night.
After the goal by Willis, Ohio State took over the game, dominating position and penetrating the Golden Panther defense to eventually find the equalizer.
The goal came from the head of Buckeye forward Sebastian Rivas, who delivered a header into the net in the 35th minute after some fancy footwork by midfielder Killian Ben, who passed the ball in from eight yards out to pick up the assist.
FIU goalkeeper Eric Reyes made five saves on the night, but could not keep out the game winner in the 40th minute when Parnell Hegngi took a shot at the lower corner near the goalpost that just got past Reyes to give the Buckeyes the 2-1 lead.
The Golden Panthers were out shot in the first half 11-2, but came back and out shoot the Buckeyes 11-5 in the second half. Despite that, the Golden Panthers failed to find the tying goal among all the chances they had.
“The scoreline was misleading,” said head coach Munga Eketebi. “We had plenty of opportunities and kept the ball in their defensive third.”
Willis and Quentin Albrecht recorded two shots each while newcomer Roberto De Sousa had three shots coming off the bench.
With all the pressure being put on the Buckeyes, the Golden Panthers had trouble finishing plays and were depending on swift counter attacks late in the game.
David Tiemstra put the game out of reach for FIU, scoring the third goal for Ohio State in the 80th minute.
“We have to do a better job of finishing off plays,” said Eketebi. “We have improved on getting corners and playing set pieces, but in order to beat a team like this we need to capitalize on every chance we get.”
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